Overhead railway superstructure construction



Feb. 22, 1966 Filed Aug. 2l. 1965 N. ESQUILLAN OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION 9 Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb- 22, 1966 N. ESQUILLAN OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 2l. 1965 9 Sheets-Sheet 2 Feb. 22, 1966 N. EsQUlLLAN OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION 9 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 2l. 1963 om Q Feb. 22, 1966 N. ESQLHLLAN 3,236,192

OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 2l, 1963 9 Sheets-Sheet 4 Feb. 22, 1966 N, ESQUMAN 3,236,192

OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUGTURE CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 2l, 1963 9 Sheets-Sheet 5 0 l o N i -e-l- N n Feb. 22, 1966 N. EsQulLLAN OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 2l. 1963 9 Sheets-Sheet 6 .NA .bmw

Feb. z2, 1966 N, ESQUILLAN 3,236,192

OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 21, 1963 9 Sheets-Sheet '7 Feb. 22, 1966 N. EsQulLLAN OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION 9 Sheets-Sheet 8 Filed Aug. 21, 1965 Feb. 22, 1966 N. EsQulLLAN 3,236,192

OVERHEAD RAILWAY S UPERSTRUC TURE CONS TRUCTION Filed Aug. 2l, 1963 9 Sheets-Sheet 9 United States Patent O 3,236,192 OVERHEAD RAILWAY SUPERSTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION Nicolas Esquillan, Paris, France, assignor to Safege- Transport, Paris, France Filed Aug. 21, 1963, Ser. No. 303,531 Claims priority, application France, Oct. 31, 1962, 914,020 7 Claims. (Cl. 104-94) An increasing interest is taken, in projects concerning town transports, suburban transports or the like, in the construction of overhead or suspended railway systems, that is, railway lines wherein the cars are suspended from an overhead track carried in turn by an adequate superstructure.

This transport system is characterized by many advantages, especially in connection with town traffic, notably if compared with underground railway lines. Therefore, this type of transport system is usually referred to as elevated or overhead railway system.

The construction of this suspended overhead railway system has already been described in detail in previous Patents Nos. 2,825,291 and 3,059,591, assigned to the Socit Anonyme Franaise dEtudes, de Gestion et dEnterprises (S.A.F.E.G.E.). As recited in these prior patents the superstructure consists essentially of supports, posts, columns or arms extending outward from columns or the like on which is or are secured the beam or beams equipped with the tracks for the self-powered units of the cars. According to the lay-out of the railway line these beams are rectilinear or curvilinear, hori- Zontal or inclined, like the tracks carried thereby.

To meet the requirements set upon them the aforesaid beams of the overhead railway system contemplated in this invention are generally of tubular configuration in cross-section with a longitudinal slot at the bottom to permit the passage of the car suspension members. This cross-section may be of circular, oval, square, rectangular or trapezoidal configuration. As a rule, these beams are divided into sections supported by the posts or like supports, adequate expansionl joints being provided between the different sections of the line.

In the above-mentioned Patent No. 3,059,591 as well as in Patent No. 3,059,588, there is described a tubular beam construction in the form of a substantially square, box-sectioned unit open at the bottom and made of concrete, notably prestressed concrete.

This invention is concerned primarily with novel arrangements and improvements in this prestressed concrete construction with a view to provide a beam having the minimum weight combined with the strength necessary to withstand any stress likely to be applied thereto, while affording an easy construction and quick assembly.

According to this invention the beam designed for supporting an overhead railway track of the type set forth hereinabove consists of sections or like elements adapted to be assembled in end-to-end relationship, each section comprising a concrete shell of substantially square crosssection having rounded corners, with one or a plurality of stiffeners constituting reinforcing webs or ribs, the edges of the bottom opening of said shell having the shape of reinforced heels, somewhat like the beads of pneumatic tire cover, which constitute or receive the supports of the track runways, the tubular section assembly being prestressed both longitudinally and transversely.

Each tubular section is prestressed by means of straight or curved cables, or by means of adherent wires.

To constitute the tubular beam assembly the successive sections may be used separately or interconnected to constitute juxtaposed elements of relatively great length asconcrete.

3,236,192 Patented Feb. 22, 1966 sembled by means of prestressing cables adapted if desired to produce a stress compensating action so that the beam will constantly preserve the most favorable conditions from the point of view of strain.

Preferably, the beam sections or elements are assembled above the supports, and adequate joints are used to this end, some of these joints being designed to permit the expansion due to temperature differences.

The runways are either laid directly upon the lower heels or beads of the beam sections, or mounted on a metallic structure fitting on said heels and also on the shell stieners. In this last case the metallic structure is designed with a View to permit the adjustment of the runway or its replacement, if necessary.

The features and advantages of this overhead railway superstructure construction will appear more clearly as the following description proceeds, with reference to the accompanying drawings given by way of example and illustrating diagrammatically a plurality of typical forms of embodiment of this construction. In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational diagrammatic view showing a certain length of a superstructure according to this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a plan view corresponding to FIG. 1;

FIGURE 3 is a cross-section taken upon the line III-III of FIG. 4;

FIGURE 4 is a longitudinal section taken upon the line IV-IV of FIG. 3;

FIGURE 5 is a cross-section showing diagrammatically a typical form of embodiment of a beam section;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary longitudinal section taken upon the line VI-VI of FIG. 5;

FIGURE 7 is a detail view showing the shell reinforcement disposal in the beam of FIG. 5;

FIGURE 8 is a similar View showing the reinforcing elements of a stiffener in the same section;

FIGURE 9 is a sectional view showing an alternative form of embodiment of a tubular beam section;

FIGURE 10 is a section taken upon the line X-X of FIG. 9;

FIGURE 11 is a section taken upon the line XIXI of FIG. 10, showing the shell reinforcements;

FIGURE 12 shows the stiifener reinforcements as seen in section taken upon the line XII-XII of FIG. 10;

FIGURE 13 shows on a larger scale the details concerning the heel or bead with the runway according to the section construction illustrated in FIGS. 9 to 12;

FIGURE 14 illustrates diagrammatically the positioning of the beam with its prestressed members;

FIGURE 15 is a detail view showing the junction between two beam sections with a sealing joint; and

FIGURE 16 illustrates the junction of two adjacent sections with an expansion joint.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings the overhead railway superstructure according to the general arrangement described and` illustrated in the aforesaid Patents Nos. 2,825,291 and 3,059,591 is adapted to receive trains of cars 1 suspended from overhead tracks 2 and 3. The cars are suspended through adequate suspension means from bogie-truck-s rolling on suitable runways provided on the tracks 2 and 3. Moreover, these tracks are equipped with current supply means, signal lines, etc.

The tracks 2 and 3 consist essentially of tubular beams carried by supports consisting in turn of brackets or bridge elements 4 bearing on posts 5. According to railway line requirements the Ibeams 2 and 3 are straight, curved, horizontal or inclined.

Each beam is comprised of aligned and assembled tubular sections 6 (see FIGS. 3 and 4) of prestressed These sections are open at their bottom to provide a free longitudinal slot or like aperture 7 permitting` the passage of the car suspension members therethrough. The tubular beam portion extending between two adjacent supports 5 may consist of either a plurality of assembled sections, notably sections interconnected through prestressing cables, or a signal section, the ends of this beam portion being suspended from the brackets 4 and connected to the ends vof the adjacent beam portions 'by means of joints 8.

The cross-sectional configuration of each tubular beam and therefore of each section 6 is such that it complies strictly Iwith the clearance reqiurements of the rollingstock self-powered units. As shown in FIG. 5, this requirement makes it necessary to provide inside the beam a free space 9 of substantially square configuration to permit the passage of the bogie-trucks 10 of the selfpowered unit, with lateral guide wheels 11 as shown in chain-dotted lines. This space 9 may also receive the current supply lines, the signal lines, etc. designated diagrammatically by the reference numeral 12.

The tubular beam arrangements, as well as the length and relative spacing of the stiffeners, etc. are deter-mined with a view to avoid any resonance effect both with the trains of cars and with each component element thereof.

According to this invention the tubular beam section having a substantially Isquare configuration in crosssection consists yof a reinforced-concrete wall 1'3 of which the lower edges, on either side of the slot 7, are provided with reinforced heels or beads 14. These heels 14 are adapted to receive the runways 15 for the wheels 10 of the bogie-trucks. Runways 16 are also provided for the lateral guide wheels 11. The beam section has rounded corners as shown at 17 and 18.

To reinforce the concrete shell 13 stiffering members 19 are provided in the form of reinforced-concrete ribs forming an integral part of the shell 13. These ribs may have various shapes'and disposa'ls. In FIGS. 5 and 6 these stiffeners are disposed externally of the shell 13. A cover 20 for example in the form of a plastic sheet may be secured on the stiffeners in order to give a plain, uniform appearance to the beam surface.

At its upper portion the beam may be provided with inner reinforcing stiffeners for example in the `form of ribs 21.

To meet the necessarily strict strength requirements the beam section thus constructed comprises a reinforcing system and longitudinal and transverse prestressing means.

Thus, within the heels or beads 14 one or a plurality of longitudinal passages 22, preferably of circular crosssection, are formed and adapted to receive longitudinal prestressing cables 23. These cables are notably of the nest or compensated crossed type described in the French Patent 1,330,787 entitled Improvements Vin the Use of Prestress in Construction. Moreover, transverse reinforcements 24 are provided in the shell 13.

In the stifeners 19 and 21 prestressed cable S25 are provided which co-act with reinforcing elements 26' of conventional type according to any suitable arrangement.

The stiffeners 19 and 21 instead of being disposed externally of the shell 13 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 may be disposed internally thereof as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. This arrangement imparts directly a uniform and plain appearance to the outside of beam, but decreases the free inner space 9.

In the alternate form of embodiment shown in FIGS. 9 and l0, another type of `bogie runway construction is illustrated, which is a composite concrete and steel structure.

In this alternate embodiment the shell 13 is associated with inner stiffeners 27 and the runways 15 are mounted on longitudinal section steel members 28 secured on the ends of heels 14.

Passages 29 (FIG. 11) are provided in the heels 14 for receiving the longitudinal prestressing cables. In the shell 13 are disposed the steel reinforcing elements 30 surrounding the beam section to which a prestress is applied due to the tractive effort exerted at their ends 31. Complementary reinforcements are also provided at 32 and 33.

Passages 29 `are formed in the stiffening ribs 27 (FIG. 12) for the assembly cables, and an external reinforcement '34 is yalso provided yas shown. This reinforcement 34 is conjugated with inner reinforcing steel elements r35 by means of transverse steel elements 36. The heel 14 receives .an assembly of oblique steel elements 37 and 38.

Thisstructure yassociating the continuous thin wall 13 with the reinforced stiffening ribs 19 or 27 combines the necessary beam strength and lightness requirements.

In the mixed concrete-steel construction illustrated more in detail in FIG. 13 the heel reinforcing irons 37, 38 have welded thereon at 39, 40 a U-sectioned iron 41 capping the end of the con-crete heel \14. Fitted on the reinforcing steel beams 41 is a steel bolt 42 having a screw threaded end portion 43. The Asupport 28 of runway 15 is mounted on this bolt 42 and secured by means yof 'a nut-forming internally threaded flanged collar 44 associated with a lock nut 45.

The aforesaid support -28 may consist for example of an I-sectioned steel beams receiving on its upper flange the runway strip -15 consisting as la rule of laminated wood. This support 28, in this specific example, is mounted on the bolt 42 through the medium of ran adjustable slide 46 |and locked by clamping between Ia pair of plastic plates 47, 48 consisting for example of neoprene.

This arrangement is advantageous in that it permits the replacement of the runway While affording a possibility of adjustment during the assembly operation and also subsequently for example to compensa-te a distortion occurring in the beam or the creeping of bearing elements or the like.

As illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings, the tubular Isections of -the beams constituting the overhead railway track are carried by posts 5. Each post carries two tracks through the bracket-line suspension structure 4. Two sect-ions 6 are connected |at a joint 8 plumb with this suspension structure 4.

The mounting of each track on its support is effected by suspending groups of assembled sections from said brackets 4. FIG. 14 illustrates the mounting of three successive sections 52, 53 yand 54, the joints being respectively a continuity joint 55 and an expansion joint 56.

Two sections 53, 54 are assembled with a continuity joint 55 in the manner illustrated more in detail in FIG. 15. Each section is provided at its base with suitably prestressed cables `57 extending Ialong the passages 29 lformed `in the heels 14 (see FIGS. 7, 8 and 11 to 13). At their upper portions and if desired on their sides the two sections `53, 54 are assembled by prestressed cables 58 extending through the joint 55 and anchored -at 59, 60 on stiffeners 27 of said sections, whereby compensation stresses on the bearing points can be exerted before the sections are assembled as `a continuous unit. To this end, the upper portion of .the joint comprises bearing bosses or projections 63. After obtaining this compensation and before :forming the 'continuous unit or assembly, the lower portion of the joint receives a suitable filling 64.

In the example illustrated the stiffeners 27 are disposed inside the tubular portion, according to the form of embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 9 to 13. But it will be readily understood Ithat the same arrangement utilizing prestressing cables interconnecting the beam sections could be applied to sections having external stiffeners as shown in FIGS. 5 to 8, said -cables bearing in this case against the stiffeners 19.

At the expansion joint `56 the suspension of sections 52 and 53 on the bracket 4 is obtained by leaving a small free space therebetween, this gap constituting a break of continuity in the section. Thus, the prestressing cables 57 terminate at ythe ends of the beam. At the upper portion of the sections prestressing cables 61 are also provided which bear at 62 on a section stilener.

Of course, the arrangements illustrated in the drawings land described hereinabove sh'ould not be `construed as limiting the invention since many -modiiications may be contemplated in the practical embodiment of the reinforcing irons and lin the arrangement of the prestressing cables. Provided that the beam consists of an open shell made of prestressed concrete and is provided with stiffeners, it remains within the purview and scope of the present invention.

What I claim is:

1. A superstructure of a suspended overhead railway system comprising Ia tubular beam constituting the track for 4the overhead vehicles and yformed with a longitudinal slot at the bottom portion for passage of the vehicle suspension members, said beam being composed of a plurality of aligned box sections, each section being formed as a unitary integral concrete shell of substantially `square cross-sectional eoniguration composed of `side walls, a top wall, and `a horizontal slotted bottom, the portions of said Ibottom at either side of said slot `constituting reinforced heels carrying the runways yfor the track, at least `one stitfening rib projecting from at least one of said side walls, longitudinal passages in said heels, and longitudinal prestressed cables continuous across the adjacent ends of aligned continuous sections passing through sa-id passages.

2. The superstructure as claimed in claim \1 comprising reinforcements in said -heels and runways ron said heels.

3. The superstructure yas claimed in claim 1 comprising metal supports -secured `to the ends of said heels, said supports carrying the runways.

4. The superstructure as claimed in claim 3 comprising reinforcing iron inserts in said heels, U-iron caps enclosing the `free ends of the heels secured .to said inserts, a horizontal steel bolt secured to said U-iron, a runway support carried by said bolt, and means adjustably securing said support on said bolt.

r5. A superstructure as claimed in claim 1 comprising prestressed cables passing through the top portions of contiguous sections.

l6. A superstructure as claimed in claim 1 wherein said stiiening ribs project externally from said walls.

7. A superstructure 'as claimed in claim 1 wherein said stiiening ribs project internally `from said walls.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,425,805 8/ 1922 Strauss 104-94 2,043,356 6/ 1936 Strauss 104-94 3,059,588 10/ 1962 Chadenson 104-94 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,072,538 3/1954 France.

1,258,927 3/ 1961 France.

ARTHUR L. LA POINT, Primary Examiner.

EUGENE G. BOTZ, Examiner. 

1. A SUPERSTRUCTURE OF A SUSPENDED OVERHEAD RAILWAY SYSTEM COMPRISING A TUBULAR BEAM CONSTITUTING THE TRACK FOR THE OVERHEAD VEHICLES AND FORMED WITH A LONGITUDINAL SLOT AT THE BOTTOM PORTION FOR PASSAGE OF THE VEHICLE SUSPENSION MEMBERS, SAID BEAM BEING COMPOSED OF A PLURALITY OF ALIGNED BOX SECTIONS, EACH SECTION BEING FORMED AS A UNITARY INTEGRAL CONCRETE SHELL OF SUBSTANTIALLY SQUARE CROSS-SECTIONAL CONFIGURATION COMPOSED OF SIDE WALLS, A TOP WALL, AND A HORIZONTAL SLOTTED BOTTOM , THE PORTIONS OF SAID BOTTOM AT EITHER SIDE OF SAID SLOT CONSTITUTING REINFORCED HEELS CARRYING THE RUNWAYS FOR THE TRACK, AT LEAST 